Select information migrated from the 10th Interval Harper Hall Wiki of Harper's Tale
Information may be changed or updated to reflect the jump to 12th Pass Pern
What Is the Harpercraft?
The Harpercraft is perhaps the most versatile Pernese craft, encompassing many fields. Teaching is perhaps its most important function, encouraging open, creative, forward-looking thought. A Harper acts as mediator, official record-keeper, political advisor, and judge, among others in their role as a representative of the Craft and and the Hold or Weyr to which they are posted. Of course, the Craft's best known trade is entertainment, in realms that range from theatre to art to dance to their most conspicuous field, music.
A Harper's Duties
Arbitrator
A harper may be brought in as an arbiter in a dispute. It is, in such cases, the harper's duty to remain unbiased and impartial. If s/he cannot do so, s/he must remove her/himself from the dispute. The harper must listen to all sides of the argument, and work out a settlement which is fair and practical. In all cases, it is the harper's duty to uncover those sides to the problem which are not the obvious ones.
The Lord Holder, Craftmaster, or Weyrleader has final say in a judgement or punishment. If the matter cannot be satisfactorily resolved, a Conclave has jurisdiction.
At times, politics will rule the day and a matter may be settled unjustly but expediently. It can be difficult to sit back and watch this happen, but the harper must school him or herself to see all the sides of the issue, including those of the men and women who sit in judgement. Often, is is possible to find a balance which can be fair to those involved while still satisfying the imperatives of politics, but it can be a difficult job which requires originality, patience, and diplomacy.
Harper Ranks
Apprentice
Apprentices are engaged in a rigorous course of study, attending classes on every day save restdays. An apprentice is expected to take his or her studies seriously — those that do not invariably either leave voluntarily or are placed in jobs around the hall or hold which suit their temperaments and abilities.
This does not mean to say that an apprentice is locked up all day in stuffy classrooms. Assignments often require an apprentice to interact with the outside world, either through performance or other projects which may involve the hold or other crafts. There are also rehearsals and recitals, debates, teaching workshops, and the occasional gather and restday. Also, while excessive drinking is discouraged, apprentices and senior harpers alike often find jollity in the Hold's tavern.
Apprentices don't, generally, have the freedom to travel around as they please. There are classes to worry about, and all leaves of absence must be approved prior to any trip. This includes trips around Ista — to the weyr, or Gar, for instance. However, apprentices are often sent as messengers or on business with journeymen or masters, so there is plenty of opportunity to get out. If a long absence occurs without the approval of a senior harper, it is cause for a review of the apprentice's performance and, depending upon the gravity of the situation, punishment may require that the apprentice be expelled from the craft.
Because of the focus needed to complete a successful apprenticeship, apprentices are forbidden to engage in romantic relationships. This does not stop some, who sneak out and tryst in Hold gardens or who pass notes in the passages of the Hall. It must never been done in the open, however, for while the occasional date may be overlooked by the senior harpers, anything more than that is cause for confinement to quarters and, worse yet, a good long lecture on dedication to the craft and the importance of study.
Up to 10th Interval Timeline of the Harper Hall
1st Pass
2nd Interval
3rd Pass
5th Interval
6th Pass
8th Pass
8th Interval
9th Pass
10th Pass
10th Interval
Timeline Credits
Events and TinyPlots
The Events Surrounding the Incarceration and Trial of Seamus
Teraille's Harper Concert, June 1999
Murder in the Harperhall Series